Stephanie is a physical anthropologist with a background in human biology and physiology, specifically aimed at neuroendocrine and metabolic systems. She developed an interest in hominin dietary ecology through her master’s work at Texas State University-San Marcos on comparisons of dietary practices among modern Western and indigenous human populations. Stephanie is broadly interested in addressing human dietary flexibility as signaled by potential ontogenetic adaptations. More specifically she intends to study the contribution and extraction of nutritional components in cooked versus raw plant foods in the diets of the Hadza of Tanzania. Her larger academic goals are to help improve our understanding of hominin evolution by defining physiological versus technological responses to different environmental pressures as they relate to diet.